Our exclusive interview with the Aussie F1 star reveals his hopes for the new season.

Daniel Ricciardo confident ahead of 2017 F1 season

Daniel Ricciardo may not have been crowned the 2016 Formula One driver's champion but he was widely considered the best driver last season.

Respected British publications Autosport and Motorsport rated the Australian the top talent from 2016, ahead of world champion Nico Rosberg and 10 time grand prix winner Lewis Hamilton.

And with good reason too as Ricciardo was in career-best form becoming the only driver to score a pole position without driving the dominant Mercedes. He also won the Malaysian Grand Prix and looked set for victories in both Spain and Monaco but was knocked out of contention by strategy and pitstop errors.

He also proved his mettle against F1's new golden-haired boy, Max Verstappen. The young Dutchman is touted as the sport's 'next big thing' but was out-qualified by Ricciardo 11 times to six and out-scored by the Australian as well.

So heading into the 2017 season, which starts this weekend with the Australian Formula One Grand Prix at Albert Park, Ricciardo should be feeling confident. But after experiencing the highs of winning three grands prix in 2014 to the lows of a difficult 2015 season plagued by a slow and unreliable car, Ricciardo is keeping his expectations in check.

Photo: Getty Images

Pre-season testing has shown Ricciardo's Red Bull Racing team is once again near the front of the field. But for the fourth year in a row the Mercedes-AMG team looks like the one to beat while Ferrari is looking ominously rapid having set the pace in pre-season testing.

Ricciardo heads into the new season at his home race with a degree of optimism but is also open-minded about the competition.

"I learnt from 2015 that I'm not expecting anything 100 per cent," Ricciardo tells Drive. "I want to race for a world title but if I don't win it am I going to be heart broken? No. I'll only be heartbroken if I lead the championship up until the last race and lose it there.

"I'm expecting Mercedes to have the target on them. If we can get close to them and get a few wins and somehow end up in a championship fight towards the end of the season then that's what I want. Whether I'm fighting for a win or fifth place I've still got my reputation on the line.

"My teammate Max is making a lot of headlines so I've still got that challenge ahead of me. If I can get on top of him again this year that goes along way.

"I'm not going to go into Melbourne and say 'I can win this thing' and be miserable if it doesn't happen, because it's just setting too many hopes this early in the season."

The 2017 season represents a major change for F1 with new regulations allowing wider cars with more aerodynamic downforce as well as wider tyres. So far the new cars, as expected, have been significantly quicker and are capable of carrying more speed in the corners, creating a bigger challenge for drivers. But Ricciardo isn't fazed by the changes.

"The general characteristics of the car are similar, I don't think we need to approach it any differently it's just the corner speeds are higher," Ricciardo says.

"They're just quicker. Even though the tyres are wider we're still on a Pirelli tyre so that gives a similar feeling from our point of view. We can just get into the throttle a little but harder, traction is a bit better because of the tyres and the downforce. High-speed corners are more impressive for sure. I said it from the start, that will be pretty cool to see if you're a fan, live at the racetrack I think that will be impressive."

Photo: Mark Thompson/Getty Images

Red Bull Racing's design boss Adrian Newey, the same man working with Aston Martin to craft the Valkyrie hypercar, is known as the master of aerodynamics so Ricciardo is confident his team will get the most advantage from the new regulations.

"I think we'll really see the Red Bull from four years ago now," Ricciardo says, pointing back to Red Bull's title-winning run. "We'll see if that pedigree is still there."

The biggest question mark hangs over the Renault power unit in the back of the car. The French firm has struggled to match the power of the Mercedes-AMG since the turbocharged V6 hybrid era began in 2014.

The new season presents Renault with its best chance to catch up and Ricciardo is happy with how the new engine felt during pre-season testing.

"The last few years we've needed to make a bigger step than the others to keep closing the gap," he says. "I think so far in terms of pure power we found a bit more. Then I heard Mercedes had found a big chunk, or rumours they had found a big chunk, so how we end up compared to the others I'm not sure. But certainly from our point of view pure numbers are better than last year at the moment."

So if Red Bull Racing and Renault can provide the Australian with a capable car what does he believe will be the difference that will make him world champion ahead of his rivals?

"If I'm really honest with you I just believe in myself," he says.

"I believe in myself more than the others on the grid. I believe I want it more than the others. A lot of us say we want it and we believe we can do this or that, but I think when it comes down to it I believe not everyone has that true, 100 per cent belief. I definitely have that in myself. I think I want it for the right reasons."

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Drive Comments

Spazzatura Falo | 20 Mar 2017 19:38

Best F1 driver in the world. So what? He's bested the other few dozen people in the world who have ever had the opportunity to attempt his sport. Zzz.

AJ_Sydney | 20 Mar 2017 23:59

@spazz, what a charmingly positive comment. I do hope your day (week?, life?) gets better. What of the hundreds of thousands of budding kart racers and current professional racing drivers who believe F1 is the pinnacle of racing and would love to be there but they're not good enough to gain entry. Those few dozen are already the best of the best (apart from the few who pay for a seat), and Daniel is believed, by many, to be the best of those few.

Spazzatura Falo | 21 Mar 2017 00:41

@AJ - Not good enough to gain entry to F1, or not wealthy enough to buy it?

AJ_Sydney | 21 Mar 2017 02:21

@Spazz, I did mention that. There've been 803 F1 drivers. About 15 have paid for a seat. Statistically insignificant

LU99KE | 21 Mar 2017 02:37

@ AJ - could not agree more.
@ Spazza - you obviously are into it enough to A) read the articel and B) post a comment.
Perhaps there is some prickle of envy or bitterness behind your comment? Why do you feel the need to just chop some-one down for no apparent reason. From all reports Daniel is talented, works hard and is not a self-entitled arrogant twat like some other sports stars we have. I say good on him and keep up the great work. Perhaps you would feel better in life if you could look upon an article like this with positivity. Try it sometime, you may just like it!